Sri Lanka's military declared a "safety zone" yesterday to enable 250,000 trapped civilians to cross into government-controlled territory from the diminishing area held by Tamil Tiger rebels in the north. Leaflets dropped by the air force urged civilians to travel to the 14 square-mile safety zone in rebel territory and wait there until the army could move them to shelter in safer locations, Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara said, adding: "We will not fire into that area." The announcement came as the military pushed ahead with an offensive aimed at defeating the rebels and ending the civil war.